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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28098807">florentine gold</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/fourleafprince/pseuds/fourleafprince'>fourleafprince</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, italian speaking izumi and leo, other knights are mentioned but not prevalent enough, rtiz winter fes</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 21:08:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,370</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28098807</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/fourleafprince/pseuds/fourleafprince</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Ritsu flies to Florence at the behest of Leo, arriving on Christmas Eve as a surprise to Izumi.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Sakuma Ritsu/Sena Izumi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>RitsuIzu Winter Festival</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>florentine gold</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>my name is ritsu and i was in charge of day 15 of ritsuizu winter festival! please enjoy this domestically fluffy rtiz fic!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Ahh~ Tsukippi, hurry up, it’s cold out here…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’ll be a moment! Just wait!” The furious clinking of keys follows, before ending with a click of the lock.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu grunted, pulling his scarf over his nose as his breath escaped into the night in a puff of white, “Finally. Why is it even locked if Secchan is home?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Because, you know how Sena is! So~ overly cautious.” Leo turned the doorknob, humming as he shoved his keys into his coat pocket. The ginger pushed open the door, basking the both of them in light from indoors.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Leo disappeared into the light, chirping with a mix of Italian and Japanese as he stepped inside the apartment, “</span>
  <em>
    <span>Sono a casa!</span>
  </em>
  <sup>[1]</sup>
  <span> Sena, Sena, come here!” Ritsu’s luggage clacked over the door’s threshold as Leo moved further inside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sena! </span>
  <em>
    <span>Mangerò tutto il tuo trucco se non vieni qui!</span>
  </em>
  <sup>[2]</sup>
  <span>” Leo quipped when Izumi didn’t show up almost immediately, but then the familiar voice echoed from around the corner.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Haa? </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ma che, sei grullo?!</span>
  </em>
  <sup>[3]</sup>
  <span>” Ritsu surely had no idea what on </span>
  <em>
    <span>earth </span>
  </em>
  <span>either of them were saying, but the sound of quick steps against the wooden floor made him laugh under the scarf.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As Ritsu closed the door behind him, the footsteps stopped, a huff of exhaustion coming from behind him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If I catch you anywhere </span>
  <em>
    <span>near</span>
  </em>
  <span> my things, Leo-kun, I’m going to </span>
  <em>
    <span>throw</span>
  </em>
  <span> you off the balcony and into the river outside― ah?! Kuma-kun?!” In the midst of Izumi’s threats in response to Leo, the silver haired male finally realized who stood next to his roommate, as shocked blue eyes met with sleepy crimson ones.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu pulled down his scarf to show Izumi a fanged smile, his voice coming out slyly, “It’s nice to see you too, Secchan. Is that any way to greet a guest into your home?” The raven haired boy laughed a bit, before fully taking off his scarf as it was getting much too warm now that he was inside the apartment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Surprise! Early Christmas present, Sena!” Leo cheered, hopping over to Izumi to give the other a big hug. Izumi simply stood in shock for a moment, before pushing the ginger off of him and hit him over the head with a balled-up fist. “Gwuah!” A strangled sound of pain escaped Leo.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Haa?! What do you mean ‘early Christmas present?!’ Why didn’t you tell me Kuma-kun was coming― no, not even that, why is he </span>
  <em>
    <span>here</span>
  </em>
  <span> in </span>
  <em>
    <span>Florence</span>
  </em>
  <span> and not back home?!” Izumi was fuming.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu laughed at the sight, a breathless laugh that escaped him at the imagery of Izumi and Leo acting as some sort of married couple.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...He won’t lie to himself, it made him a little jealous. But old habits die hard, even when Izumi and Ritsu have been dating for a while.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Leo groaned, rubbing the top of his head with a pout, “I brought Rittsu here for your Christmas gift! He’s my Christmas gift to you! I paid for his flight and everything, you better be grateful Sena!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi simply rolled his eyes, before snapping his line of sight back to Ritsu, who still stood near the doorway with his suitcases. He sighed, defeated. “Well? You’re just going to stand there?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nah, was thinking of leaving since you so~ desperately want me to go home.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No one said that. You’re so~ annoying.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu laughed again, before walking into the apartment proper, rolling his luggage behind him into the brightly lit living space. He’d been here a couple of times, but it’s always such a nice change. They were here after Reqiuem, of course. He and the other Knights members also decided to drop by on Izumi’s birthday to celebrate in person as well. But this time, it was just him. And Leo, but, well, not for long.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Leo had run off into another hallway with a pitter-patter of his footsteps against the wooden floor, pulling out his own set of luggage from his bedroom. Both Ritsu and Izumi looked at him perplexed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You two have fun then, okay! Mikejimama’s already waiting for me, and we have a plane to catch!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Haah?” Izumi and Ritsu had reacted at the same time, watching as their former king started making his way out of the apartment with a wave.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Leo had dug his hand into his coat pocket, before tossing Ritsu a ring of charms and a key. Opening the door with a smile, Leo turned back to look at the two who stood dumbfounded, “I’ll see you two in a couple of weeks then! That’s the car key, so if you want to go out somewhere, you can! I’m sure Sena can drive in Florence now, so have fun! </span>
  <em>
    <span>Ciao!</span>
  </em>
  <span>
    <sup>[4]</sup>
  </span>
  <span>”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And with that, the ginger disappeared back into the winter night.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu took a moment to glance at Izumi, who took a step forward, about to call after Leo, but the raven haired boy grabbed Izumi’s wrist. Icy blue eyes turned to stare at him, and Ritsu simply stood.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Just let him do his thing. You know how he is, Secchan. Once he’s off, he’s off.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi sighed in response, before shaking his head. Ritsu loosened his grip and the other moved to grab his luggage, dragging it to the hallway that Leo had run down earlier.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, no use arguing, I guess.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu followed Izumi down the corridor, being led to the guest room. The last time he was here with Knights, the rest of them had shared the guest room. Though, of course, Ritsu made his way into Izumi’s room instead since it was less crowded, meaning he had more of the bed to himself.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And Izumi was a much better sleeping companion than the rest of Knights.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Opening the door, Izumi left the luggage to the side, allowing Ritsu to walk in. The raven haired boy strode over to the bed, plopping down onto a soft comforter.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu sighed happily, lying down across the bed. “Foreign beds have such a different feel…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s not that different. It’s the same kind of material.” Izumi rolled his eyes, leaning against the doorframe.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You just don’t understaaaaand, Secchan.” Ritsu stretched a bit, feeling sleepy just by laying on the bed. He yawned a bit, but sat up again. “You’re just too used to sleeping in an Italian bed.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay, Mr. Sleeping Connoisseur. Have you eaten since you landed?” Izumi watched as Ritsu stripped himself of his heavy coat layer, laying the outerwear on the bed.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu hummed, standing back up from his position on the bed, “What, are you going to treat me to dinner?” He chuckled a bit, walking towards Izumi in the doorway, before fully intruding on the other’s personal bubble. Ritsu wrapped his arms around Izumi’s waist, pressing up close to his boyfriend with a purr, “How nice of you, fufu. Secchan’s such a nice meal to have at night…~”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu had leaned into Izumi's neck with his fangs bared, in a teasing manner, but was instead stopped prematurely, a hand now in his face, pushing him away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The vampire pouted.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We are </span>
  <em>
    <span>not</span>
  </em>
  <span> doing this here.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh? So you’ll do it somewhere else?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi pinched Ritsu’s nose, and the raven haired boy whined in pain.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Okay, okay!” Ritsu let go of Izumi’s waist, pulling away to rub at his nose. His cheeks were puffed in annoyance, “Either way, I </span>
  <em>
    <span>am</span>
  </em>
  <span> hungry. I didn’t feel like eating airplane food in the slightest. Treat me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re lucky that you didn’t come here at some absurd time of night.” Izumi huffed, before pushing himself off of the doorframe, heading back out down the hall. Of course, Ritsu knew full well this was Izumi-speak for ‘Of course I will.’ Or something adjacent to it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu laughed a bit, watching Izumi disappear back into the living room. Though, before he forgot about it completely, Ritsu went back inside the guest room, unzipping one of his suitcases to pull out a couple of wrapped presents and bags. Of course, Izumi’s gifts from him and the rest of Knights aside from Leo. Carrying the presents within his arms, Ritsu made his way towards the living room as well, where he could hear the clanging of pots and pans hitting each other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Still hate garlic?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu stuck out his tongue in response, making his way over to the living room sofa and plopping down on it. He placed the boxes and bags onto the coffee table in front of him before situating himself more properly: by laying across the sofa, taking up the whole space.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu could hear Izumi sigh, “Anything else you don’t want?” Ritsu craned his neck to look past the sofa cushions, seeing the silver haired boy over the counter with a knife and donning an apron.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“For you to look at me like that with a knife in your hands.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Unfotunately for you, </span>
  <em>
    <span>I’m</span>
  </em>
  <span> the one cooking in </span>
  <em>
    <span>my</span>
  </em>
  <span> apartment.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu plopped his head back onto the sofa cushion, “Kyaa..~ Secchan’s going to have me for dinner..~”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi wordlessly began cooking, the various sounds of the kitchen filling the rooms. Ritsu could tell the other was already getting agitated with him, so he instead focused his attention on the TV nearby. The sounds of the fridge door opening and closing, accompanied with the chopping of a knife against a cutting board and the clicking of a gas stove, echoed into the stillness. Ritsu lazily reached over to the remote he could see on the top of the coffee table, picking it up to click on the TV.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Of course, Ritsu can’t understand the local stations. They’re all in Italian, but having the background noise was nice. He simply flipped to a news station and let it ran quietly as he more or less focused on the sounds coming from the kitchen.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu sighed, burying himself deeping into soft couch cushions. Living like this.. he wondered if there could be a time he could enjoy this kind of lifestyle with Izumi more often.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was kind of like being married, living a domestic life underneath the same roof.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu shoved his face into a pillow to save himself the embarrassment of getting caught thinking about such sappy sounding things.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The sounds of frying and rushing water quickly lulled Ritsu to sleep as he curled up on the couch.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>. . . . .</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oi. Kuma-kun. How long do you plan on sleeping?”</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span>The familiar nagging voice reaches Ritsu’s ears, disturbing his nap. He groans in response, shifting around on the couch to muffle the sounds to keep sleeping with a nearby pillow.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Or, at least he would’ve, if Izumi hadn’t snatched the pillows from his grasp, leading Ritsu to whine even louder.</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span><br/>
</span>
  <span>“Secchaaaaaaan.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t you ‘Secchan’ me. I made you dinner, and for what? For you to sleep and make it go cold?” Ritsu suddenly was kicked in the stomach, causing him to shoot up in pain.</span>
  <span><br/>
<br/>
</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The raven haired boy rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes, a hand over his stomach where Izumi had just practically stepped on him. “Gwuah.. so forceful. But I guess I love that part of you too.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi rolled his eyes, before taking hold of Ritsu’s hand to pull him off the couch and led him towards the open dining room. The savory smell of meat wafted into Ritsu’s nose, before being presented to a rather fancy dinner of thick steak.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wow..~ Really?” Ritsu purred, he came closer to the table, sitting at one side of it while Izumi moved to the opposite side. “Are you </span>
  <em>
    <span>sure</span>
  </em>
  <span> you weren’t expecting me? A romantic steak dinner just before Christmas like this? Who were you going to have it with, Tsukippi?” Ritsu leaned forward a bit to rest his head on the palm of his hand, a soft laugh escaping him as the other settled across from him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I would’ve made something much lighter, but Leo-kun was the one who bought all of this.” Izumi sighed, picking up a fork with a soft clink, taking a stab at the slab of meat while taking hold of the knife in his other hand. “Seeing as he’s </span>
  <em>
    <span>run off,</span>
  </em>
  <span> it would simply be a waste to have to throw it all out, you know.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“This is a Florentine specialty. I’ve sharpened my culinary skills quite a bit while staying here. You better appreciate it, Kuma-kun.” Ritsu could swear he could see a glint of accomplishment in Izumi’s eyes for a moment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu did the same, taking a slice of the meat to bite into, savoring the medium-rare steak in his mouth for a moment. It was tasty, for sure. He really did enjoy the steak a good amount, humming.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Getting to have Secchan’s cooking is such a rarity. You really do make a good wife, fufu.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Who’s the wife in this relationship?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Time passed quickly as they both ate, idly chatting in between. Ritsu told Izumi about how Arashi and Tsukasa were doing, and the funny things that had happened recently. Not that long ago, he and Arashi had to comfort their king from being left out of his friend group in a certain shuffle unit made for Christmas. In the end, Tsukasa proceeded to become one of their biggest supporters instead. No one could be a bigger fanboy for his friends than Tsukasa (except, probably Aira, who was part of said unit).</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu paused to take a drink of the red liquid within the wine glass nearby, though he paused to glance over at Izumi.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s non-alcoholic champagne. You won’t get drunk. </span>
  <em>
    <span>I</span>
  </em>
  <span> can’t afford to get drunk, especially when being in Italy.” Izumi was also holding onto his wine glass, swishing the champagne inside a bit.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The vampire took a sip, humming. “Right, because the age is different here.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They continued their conversation, Izumi now telling Ritsu of his side of things ever since coming back from his time from the Midnight Butlers filming. Izumi managed to pick up smaller gigs, once he figured he should lower his standards just a bit. It’s been good for him in his modeling career, acting as some sort of domino effect as each job recommends him to his next job. On top of that, he has to deal with Leo like he’s some stray cat. Izumi just sighs, before taking another sip of his drink, while Ritsu laughs in response.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>. . . . .</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu lets out a satisfied puff of breath, leaning back in his chair while placing a hand on his full stomach. Somehow, he managed to eat the whole steak.. Florentine steaks sure are something else. And soon approaches the food coma, at least, until Izumi stands up from his seat, picking up the plates and utensils to bring back into the kitchen.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The raven haired boy stays in the chair, close to falling asleep. Especially when he hears the water run, as Izumi begins to wash the dishes.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Don’t you fall asleep on me again, Kuma-kun.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu whined, “I can’t help it, the plane ride made me sleepy in the night. Plus that was a lot of―</span>
  <em>
    <span>urp</span>
  </em>
  <span>,” He clasped a hand over his mouth to muffle the escape of air, a soft ‘sorry’ following it. “A lot of food.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Stand up then.” Dishes clattered when Izumi placed them on a drying rack. “Take a walk.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The vampire groaned. “No way.. even if I wanted to, you think I know my way around here..?” Still, Ritsu stood up, a hand still on his stomach, in hopes not to upset it too much. He sighed, before wandering a bit around the dining room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A large sliding door to a balcony that overlooked the river outside caught Ritsu’s attention. Not only because the lights from across the city flickered in the distance of the winter night, but because snow began to fall from the sky, a thin layer of white covering the outside world. Ritsu leaned against the faux glass door, staring between his reflection and the world outside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu sighed, “It’s really winter, huh.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He pushed off of the door, heading towards Izumi who just finished washing dishes, turning off the tap and drying his hands with a hanging towel.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course it is.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s almost the end of the year.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu tumbled into Izumi, wrapping his arms around the silver haired boy’s waist. Izumi placed a hand in Ritsu’s hair, threatening to push him off, but waited for a moment. “Is there something wrong, Kuma-kun? Did you catch Leo-kun’s sentimentality disease or something?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu simply laughed into Izumi’s side, nuzzling into the hand that found itself in his hair. Eventually both of them made their way onto the living room couch, Ritsu being the one to lead them and pushing Izumi onto the cushions.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Did you somehow get </span>
  <em>
    <span>drunk</span>
  </em>
  <span> on something </span>
  <em>
    <span>non-alcoholic?</span>
  </em>
  <span>” The silver haired boy finally managed to push Ritsu off of him, shifting on the sofa to sit in a more comfortable position that didn’t involve being stuck on his side.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu loosely hung from Izumi now, sitting up as well. Another laugh bubbled from his throat, a smile across his lips, “It’s just, y’know? We’ll be together for the next year too, right?”</span>
  <span></span><br/>
<span><br/>
</span>
  <span>Red eyes met with blue, and they stared at each other for a moment. Even though a soft smile shown on Ritsu’s face, Izumi could see a spark of loneliness behind those crimson eyes. The silver haired boy placed his hand on Ritsu’s cheek, stroking it with an uncharacteristically gentle hand. Izumi sighed, bringing Ritsu closer.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Of course we well.” Izumi whispered in between the silence.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu placed his own hand over Izumi’s, closing his eyes to nuzzle against the other’s hand. “I’m glad, Secchan.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was quiet again, as the both of them stayed within each other’s arms. Ritsu really could fall asleep at this rate, but he eventually forced himself off of Izumi with a bit of reluctance.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I know it’s not Christmas just yet, but Nacchan and Suuchan made me bring their presents with me. There’s also one where we all pitched in together.” Ritsu turned his attention to the coffee table, where the present boxes and bags sat. The raven haired boy reached over to grab one of the boxes, before handing it to Izumi.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He put it directly into Izumi’s hands. A small black box, that fit neatly within his hands, held together by a single red ribbon.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You can choose to open them now, or later. But this one is my gift specifically.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi took hold of the box, watching at Ritsu’s hands retreated, allowing him to fully view the gift, tilting it side to side. He switched gazes between the box, and Ritsu’s smiling face. Izumi pinched at one end of the ribbon, pulling it apart. Of course, Izumi already had his suspicions as to what it could be.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Using his other hand, he had flipped open the box, revealing exactly what he knew to be inside.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I’m not proposing to you, just so you know. I don’t want to be that fast.” Ritsu shyed away, a rare sight to see from the normally confident vampire. He rubbed the back of his neck, looking off to the side. “It’s just a nice ring I thought would look nice on you.” Ritsu huffed quietly, fidgeting a bit where he sat on the couch. “Take it as like.. a promise ring, or something.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi carefully pulled the ring out of its encasing, before slipping it onto his own hand. He hadn’t said a word just yet, silently admiring the twinkle that came from the pale blue gems embedded within the gold band when he tilted it in the light.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“If it’s.. not to your standards or, something.. I can return it, and get something else.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Kuma-kun, shut up for a moment.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ritsu turned to look at Izumi again, but was taken by surprise when Izumi’s hands cupped his face, pulling him into a kiss, unprompted. The vampire could feel the cold metal of the ring touch his cheek, causing him to soften, returning the kiss.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Izumi pulled away first, slowly unlike when he initiated it. He leaned forward to touch foreheads with Ritsu, their eyes level with each other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“...Merry Christmas, Secchan.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Merry Christmas, Kuma-kun.”</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>[1]: "I'm home!"<br/>[2]: "If you don't come here, I'm going to eat your make-up!"<br/>[3]: "Are you crazy?!"<br/>[4]: "Bye!"</p></blockquote></div></div>
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